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PCB CONTAMINATION Army Corps vows cleanup of cemetery
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Posted on Aug 11 2000
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said it is moving ahead with the cleanup of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contaminated soil in Cemetery No. 2 in Tanapag village while it has yet to respond to concerns raised by the Division of Environmental Quality.
DEQ Director Ignacio Cabrera has asked the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to test the groundwater in Tanapag village’s Cemetery No. 2 to determine if it had been contaminated with PCB, a highly toxic chemical.
The Army Corps has awarded the $3.1 million contract to Environmental Chemical Corp. of Aiea, Hawaii, for the removal and treatment of
PCB found in the soil at the cemetery.
ECC has begun mobilizing and preparing to carry out the work on Phase 1 of the contract by mid-August. Phase 1, which will cover the removal and temporary stockpiling of PCB, is scheduled to be completed by Nov. 1 to allow the community visit the burial ground on All Soul’s Day.
The Army Corps said Phase 2 of the project will involve treatment and is expected to begin early next year. Tests will be conducted in Cemetery No. 2 before and after the remediation process.
The Army Corps has assured the people that work will be done by an experienced contractor with a proven record of success in compliance with the U.S. environmental regulations.
ECC has successfully cleaned up a much larger and more complex USEPA Superfund site in Wallington Borough, N.J., where approximately 95,000 tons of contaminated soil were safely treated using a process called low temperature thermal desorption.
In Tanapag, an estimated 5,000 tons of PCB-contaminated soil will be removed and temporarily stockpiled near the cemetery. The Army Corps has assured the people that their comment will be sought on what options and alternatives they will recommend before work on Phase 2 begins.
DEQ wants the area where the PCB-contaminated soil will be temporarily stockpiled tested first before the cleanup. While the cleanup is being carried out, the Army Corps should also be available to respond immediately to any concerns raised by the villagers, DEQ said.
